Kirby made the announcement at about 12:30 a.m. Tuesday morning at the end of a marathon City Council meeting, bringing the number of incumbents on the council who have decided not to seek another term to three.

"I've decided I need to pay attention to myself," Kirby said. "I will finish out the term."

Kirby's eleventh-hour announcement came hours after the 9 p.m. Monday deadline to file for the city's primary election in September. Nobody else can file to run but write-in candidates are allowed.

Citing personal issues, Kirby only said he was inundated with politics and needed to spend time on himself.

Elected in 2009, Kirby has made crime, public housing and equality a focus of his term. Most recently Kirby has pushed for the city to respond to concerns about the disparate treatment of black Annapolis police officers and residents. He has been active within the Caucus of African-American Leaders.

Before the 2013 election, questions were raised about his home address, which was listed as 100 Conley Drive. But he was discovered to be staying at 1215 Madison St., a public housing residence next to the headquarters of the Housing Authority of the City of Annapolis.

Kirby rebuffed questions about his residence, saying in 2012 : "Where I lay my hat, at the end of the day, is my personal business, and I intend to keep that private."

Initially Kirby planned to run for office and had attended local public meetings as a candidate. He was philosophical about his final decision.

"Hopefully there were more residents who supported me than there were detractors," Kirby said in a phone call Tuesday afternoon.

Kirby's decision means a third of the City Council will be new after the election. Aldermen Jared Littmann, D-Ward 5 and Ian Pfeiffer, D-Ward 7 are not running for re-election as well.

Monday's deadline sets the stage for multiple primary battles in the wards.

Annapolis elections are held every four years with each ward and mayoral position up for grabs. The primary will take place Sept. 19 with the general election following on Nov. 7.

Incumbent Mayor Michael Pantelides will face off against Nevin Young in the Republican primary. Young is an Annapolis lawyer currently representing a man in a federal lawsuit alleging racial discrimination after he was stopped leaving a predominately African-American and Hispanic neighborhood.

Annapolis businessman Gavin Buckley is running against state Sen. John Astle in the Democratic primary. Buckley has been actively campaigning since his January announcement. Astle waited to jump start his campaign in July, saying people won't pay attention to signs if they are up too long.

Ward 1

Incumbent Alderman Joe Budge will face former Ward One Residents Association president Elly Tierney in the Democratic primary.

Republican Larry Claussen is unopposed in the Republican Primary.

Ward 2

This will be a 2013 rematch with Republican incumbent Fred Paone and Democratic candidate Kurt Riegel both running unopposed in the primary elections.

Ward 3

Alderwoman Rhonda Pindell-Charles is running unopposed in the primary election.

Ward 4

Incumbent Sheila Finlayson will face newcomer Toni Strong Pratt in the Democratic primary. There are no Republican candidates in this race.

Ward 5

Republican candidate James P. Appel and Democratic candidate Marc Rodriguez are both running unopposed in the primary. Incumbent Littmann is not running.

Ward 6

Democrats DaJuan Gay and Shaneka Henson will face off in the primary. There are no Republican candidates in this race.

Ward 7

This is the most competitive ward race with three candidates and no incumbent running. Democrats Rob Savidge and Alexus Viegas will face off in the primary. Republican David Frankel is running unopposed in the Republican primary.

Ward 8

Incumbent Ross Arnett will face John "Bumper" Moyer in the Democratic primary. Moyer is the son of two former mayors, Ellen Moyer and Pip Moyer. Republican Julie Mussog is running unopposed in the primary. Mussog is the CEO of the Anne Arundel County Economic Development Corp.

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